


Found

by hunters_retreat



Series: Further Interruptions [28]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Post-Promised Day, Pre-Relationship, Small beginnings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 07:48:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17076278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hunters_retreat/pseuds/hunters_retreat
Summary: “I did it because it was the right thing to do, Fullmetal,” he said as he looked away.  He acted like he was looking out the window, but Ed knew the man better than that.  He was a bastard most of the time, but he took care of his people.  And somehow, over the years, he and Alphonse had become a part of that team.





	Found

“Why did you do it, Bastard?”    
  
Ed wished his voice held more anger than pain but there was only so much he could do.   
  
“I figured you already had one bullet hole and a bullet is rattling around in that leg of yours from the sound of the jingling you make when you move,” Mustang answered as he stared out the window of an abandoned building, trying to see if they’d lost their pursuers.  “I didn’t think you needed another.”  
  
“That’s not what I meant,” Ed said.  He’d been shot in the shoulder but everything was still moving so they hadn’t done any permanent damage. 

  
“I think we lost them,” Mustang said as he turned away from the window to look at Ed.  “Let me see your shoulder.”

 

“And then I’ll take a look at your arm.”

 

Mustang frowned at him, but Ed shrugged his jacket off and Mustang came over to look at the bullet wound.  He pulled Ed forward and peered over his shoulder, fingers delicately touching it.

 

“Looks like it went straight through.”

 

“Yeah.  Lucky me.”

 

“How does it feel?” Mustang pulled off his own jacket and started to strip out of his shirt.  Ed knew he was staring but he wasn’t sure what to make of the man unbuttoning his shirt in front of him.  Where the hell did a lazy ass like him get a body like that?

 

“I can move it,” he said when Mustang snapped his fingers.  Ed looked up and the damn bastard was smirking and Ed refused to say anything about the way Mustang had just caught him looking at his abs.  “Its fine.  It just hurts like hell.”

 

Mustang clapped his hands and the shirt became a series of bandages. 

 

This was why Mustang had survived so long in the field.  He never forgot that there was alchemy outside of his own special array.  The man might be a blowhard politician most of the time, but Ed had caught him, more than once, with theoretical alchemy on his desk.  Once or twice, the old man had even asked Ed’s opinion on something and it had led to rather exciting debates. 

 

Those conversations usually ended when Ed and Roy were screaming opposite opinions loud enough that Hawkeye came in to remind them that they were at work, but they’d been good debates.  Well thought out.  Mustang was always wrong, but they’d been thought-provoking questions that usually led to more interesting discussions with Alphonse later that night where the bastard couldn’t hear.

 

“Let’s just hope there’s no infection,” Mustang said as he began to bandage the wound.  “I don’t have anything to clean it with.”

 

Ed closed his eyes and let him continue.  When it was done, he tested the binding and nodded.  It wasn’t perfect but they couldn’t immobilize the shoulder because he might still need it in this fight. 

 

“You think we’re in the clear yet?” Ed asked.

 

“Let’s hope so.  Our intel said it was a one-man operation so this is obviously bigger than we thought.  Did you get a chance to look at the array they were building?”

 

“Not enough to make sense of it.  They started to scrub it out as soon as they began shooting.”

 

“So, we still don’t know what they’re up to,” Mustang said with a pained sigh.

 

Ed sat up then and reached for Mustang’s arm. 

 

“I’m fine, Fullmetal.”

 

“You were shot.”

 

“Grazed only, in the arm.  I’m fine.”

 

“Then it will only take a second to check it out.”

 

Mustang relented and Ed looked at the bullet wound.  It was a straight through, just like his, but it wasn’t a graze.  He didn’t call his superior out on it.  Instead he just began to bandage his arm. 

 

“So, you didn’t answer.”

 

“I’m not sure what you want to know, Fullmetal.”

 

“Why did you pay for Alphonse’s medical bills after the Promised Day?”

 

Mustang looked up, eyes wide, but a second later he shook his head.  “Why are you asking about this now?”

 

“Because I was shot and you were shot and we’re not out of this mess yet and I need to know.  I always figured there was another time to ask.  Well, seems like I better get my answer before my luck finally runs out.”

 

“There will be plenty of time later,” Mustang said, but even as he said it, he let out a deep breath.   “I did it because it was the right thing to do, Fullmetal,” he said as he looked away.  He acted like he was looking out the window, but Ed knew the man better than that.  He was a bastard most of the time, but he took care of his people.  And somehow, over the years, he and Alphonse had become a part of that team. 

 

“You didn’t have too.”

 

“I didn’t do it because I had too, Ed.  Look, it never sat right, what we did.  At the time I didn’t see another way to help you try to get your brother back and still keep you protected.  I knew you’d be trouble, but if you were my trouble, I could keep an eye on you both.  But I was also very aware that I was sending a 12-year-old into horrible situations, even if I did try to keep you from the worst of it.  And it became clear, very quickly, that it also meant sending an 11-year-old as well.”

 

“You didn’t do anything wrong.  We were going to look for the stone no matter what.”

 

He wasn’t sure why he was defending Mustang, but of all the things to feel guilty over, this was ridiculous.  They’d been fine.

 

“And that’s why I can live with myself.  Because at least I could help you, and you occasionally seemed to trust us enough to ask for help.  But I could never pay Alphonse back for all that he did.  He wasn’t military so I couldn’t give him a paycheck, but when the doctors came to me with the debt, that was something I could do.  At least then you could take your savings and spend the time with Alphonse in Resembool and not worry about how to make ends meet.”

 

“Why did they come to you about that?” Ed asked.

 

“Ed, you were given special disposition to join the military due to your age.  Because I sponsored you, they assigned me as your legal guardian.  When the bill came, they sent it to me to okay payment since you were still in my charge.”

 

“Oh.  I didn’t know that.”

 

“It never mattered.”

 

“Well, it explains some of the rumors better.”

 

Mustang scoffed at that as Ed finished tying off the bandage around his upper arm.  “I’ve never paid attention to rumors.”

 

Ed laughed.  “Like hell you haven’t.  You collect rumors like I collect alchemy books.”

 

“No, I collect alchemy books like you collect alchemy books.”

 

“With a side of rumors,” Ed said.  “Wait.  You have a lot of alchemy books?”

 

“I have a small library of them.  Not the largest, but I find it’s adequate for most of my needs.”

 

“And you never told me?”

 

“I wasn’t aware my private library was any of your concern.”

 

“You can’t tell me you have a private library and act like I’m not going to want to see it.  Unless it’s totally lame.”

 

“There is nothing lame about my library.”

 

Ed eyed him for a moment.  “I guess we’ll have to see about that.”

 

“It was not an invitation, Fullmetal.”

 

“We’ll see about that, too.”

 

Mustang pulled his jacket back on over his bare chest and Ed looked out the window.  “Should we chance it?”

 

Mustang was still working on the buttons when he came up behind Ed.  When Ed looked over his shoulder, Mustang was eying the streets below them.  “I think we have too.  If this organization is as big as it seemed, they’ll have reinforcements and we need to get word of this to Führer Grumman.”

 

Ed nodded.  “Alright.”

 

Ed was about to make a comment about Mustang being useful this time, but the sound of gunfire rang out from below.  He watched as a few men came out of hiding places that they hadn’t been able to see, and they were downed one by one.

 

Ed looked back at Mustang who just smiled.  “Looks like Hawkeye found us.  The cavalry is here.”


End file.
